4 Rock Songs About Being a Rock Star

Chuck Berry gets credit for writing the first song about being a rock star. “Johnny B. Goode” was released in 1958 and details Berry’s rags-to-riches story of a country boy whose name may someday be on a marquee. Since Berry, many have recorded songs about fame. If the conventional advice tells you to write what you know, it’s understandable why so many rock icons explore the topic. Still, sometimes an artist writes a rock star song before they become popular. With songs this good, it’s no surprise that a kid with a guitar dreams of his or her name in lights, as Berry sang.

“Ziggy Stardust” by David Bowie

If you are going to use a cosmic word to describe famous rock musicians, you might as well go straight to the cosmos. David Bowie’s glam anthem describes his alien alter ego, Ziggy Stardust, with allusions to Jimi Hendrix, Lou Reed, and Iggy Pop. But Ziggy couldn’t survive his ego, and Bowie’s tune highlights the tragedy that often accompanies rock stardom.

“Rock ’N’ Roll Star” by Oasis

In the 1990s, many alternative rock bands appeared to be miserable with their success. But Britpop reacted against Seattle’s cynicism and doom, and Oasis became the antithesis to the gloomy attitudes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam. No one personified the “rock star” more than Liam Gallagher, who saw himself continuing in the tradition of John Lennon and Elvis Presley. “Rock ’N’ Roll Star” opens Definitely Maybe with a declaration of how the Gallagher brothers would embrace fame.

“Rock Star” by Hole

Courtney Love was going to be a rock star. Period. The final track on Live Through This recalls how everyone in school looked and acted the same. Determined to stand apart, Love survived turmoil and addiction to launch her career. Hole’s second album became a grunge masterpiece, and Love followed it with Celebrity Skin, which both critiqued and embraced fame. She may have been one of the few grunge stars who didn’t hide her ambition.

“I Wanna Be Sedated” by Ramones

For those who have never been on tour, it looks glamorous from the outside. And often, it is. However, traveling musicians, even the most famous ones, face the tedium of “nothing to do” and “nowhere to go,” as Joey Ramone sings in “I Wanna Be Sedated”. There’s quite a bit of time one burns waiting around inside airports and hotels, and it’s surprising how little time bands spend making music on the road. When rock stars get themselves into trouble, boredom is frequently the culprit. Ramones didn’t top the charts, but they became punk legends, proving sometimes it takes a while for the world to catch up.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images